it started with looking....

i looked at the work of other photographers.
the work was beautiful.
and then i sunk into a pity party because my work isn't as good as their's.
so i became discouraged because i began to wonder if i was choosing the wrong career.
i felt certain i was.
i then got a phone call.
he said everyone who had seen the photos loved them.
and they wanted my info.

God, YOU are so kind, so gracious, so good.


p.s. if you would like to see the rest of the images from this series click here

19 reasons

so this weekend was marvelous and it pretty much insured that this week is gonna be a great one. here are 19 reason why i think so. oh and fyi, the photo has nothing to do with anything. its just summery :)

01. yesterday started and ended with a cinnamon roll
02. my hubby placed 4th in a shooting competition (his first) this weekend
03. my kelly moore bag came in.
04. its amazing.
05. i'm gonna finish the desk this week.
06. seriously
07. i like my hair cut now
08. i didn't right afterwards
09. my basil is still holding on
10. pretty miraculous since i've almost killed it. twice.
11. i'm attempting to cook steak tonight.
12. i've never done that before.
13. i went shopping this weekend
14. and i love what i got.
15. i woke up to being cuddled by my hubby
16. after seeing Brave this weekend, it kinda makes me what to give out future kids scottish names
17. however, that could change in the next five to ten years
18. matt's birthday is coming up
19. we're going to the beach in 51 days.

himym + energy levels + dessert

for the past few days, my energy level has been slightly better than that of a dead sloth. i mean yesterday after an intense six hours of reading my book at work, i went home, talked to a friend, and then sllllllllowly cooked dinner and folded some of the mountain of laundry, while watching reruns of How I Met Your Mother. now, there really is nothing wrong with having a day (or two in my case) like that but i'm pretty convinced that laziness breeds laziness and energy breeds energy. so, in hopes to break the laziness cycle, here are my goals in writing.


today i will:
1.workout
2. finish sanding the desk (i've been putting it off like a champ)
3. by the primer AND the paint for the desk

tomorrow i will:
1. get up at 7am - not 7:10
2. work out
3. prime the desk 

and this, this right here is the reason i am working out this week.

7 months

you said time flies when you're having fun.

i totally agree. thanks for seven wonderful months. here's to many more.
love you, babe.

loosen up

even though this week is quickly filling up things to do - some fun like engagement shoots and other not so fun things like laundry - i figured that i should now take the time to post the photos from this weekend otherwise, it won't happen. i don't think this weekend could have been much better - i got coffee with my mom, did a little shopping, read and lay out....loveliness!! on saturday we celebrated my birthday and the evening was divine due to awesome people, and great food completed with phenomenal weather and even great music.

{1&2: table decor}{3: coolest bottle of wine ever - thank you Rosses! (and for chocolate covered espresso beans!)}{4:me and my hubby}{5:dessert}

more than willing

It was grueling, laborious work. Sounding out the vowels individually and then slowly blending them together; word after word, page after page. He sat there with me, wanting to help, but unwilling to do it for me. Finally I did it, I read a whole page of a chapter book, own my own. He was there right beside me, so proud when I finished.

A few short years later, I remember him peering into my bedroom from the hall. I should have been sleeping hours ago, but hadn't been able to put the book down. He'd give me that look that said lights out now. He described it as a wonderful problem.

Thank you Dad for being more willing to help but not doing it for me. Happy Father's Day.

Steal away.....

This week has been great but long and I am so excited for the weekend. We heading to Jackson to do some celebrating and I can't wait!! However, since I've still got a few hours till Matt gets off, I thought I'd share a few of the happy moments from the week :)

Eating @ the Veranda for the B-day dinner :)

my new favorite outfit.

Dessert is a big deal to me.

2 bracelets for 4.28 = :D

So steal away, babe.

p.s. Thank you all for the birthday wishes and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

monday funnies

I saw these this weekend and they made me laugh out loud. Hope they do the same for you!

Happy Monday :)

the firsts of ten thousand

I've looked and looked but for the life of me I can't find the website, or rather the web page again. I was just skimming through the links that had been generated by Google and one sentence stood out to me, like it was in bold, uppercase letters. It read something along the lines of "Don't worry about being a professional; focus on being a photographer, and maybe the professional will come later."  I've been chewing on it every since. You see, for a while now,  I'd lost sight of that conviction. My mind was on starting a company, not developing the art, the heart of the business. According to Malcolm Gladwell, author of Outliers, anyone who wishes to master anything; the arts, sports, a trade, use of technology, must devote ten thousand hours to it. That is at least ten thousand photographs, if not twenty or thirty thousand. So, here are my first of ten thousand.

last weekend

since this weekend is almost here, i thought i should probably post the photos of last weekend. we shot guns, ate, shopped, ate, tanned and then ate some more.

better late than never :)

because it's summer

if you're interested email me at nikki.j.mckenzie{at}gmail.com!!! i look forward to hearing from you!!